Kapil invited to express views on team composition

The latest twist in the Kapil Dev - selectors controversy is that a letter has been sent by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to the Indian coach merely inviting him to express his views to the national selectors on the composition of the Indian team for the first Test against South Africa.

As revealed by this correspondent earlier, Kapil was only invited to meet the selectors prior to the scheduled meeting. Captain Sachin Tendulkar is certain to be asked to participate in the deliberations (the captain has to be a part of the selection committee meeting and cannot be ignored, according to sources) but this may not be the case with Kapil Dev. There are indications that if the selectors are not convinced, Kapil will not be asked to be a part of the discussions. The selectors are believed to be keen on knowing Kapil's stand on the inclusion of Md Azharuddin in the team for the first Test to be played in Mumbai from February 24 to 28.

According to highly placed sources, Kapil Dev - and also Sachin Tendulkar for that matter - are likely to be asked to explain the reasons for ignoring Azhar. Kapil Dev, during the recent tour of Australia, maintained that there were certain confidential reasons for keeping Azhar out of the team. The selectors now want to know the confidentiality regarding the matter.

It may be noted here that the captain and coach can only be part of the discussions, but they have no voting power. According to the BCCI constitution, rule 32 does not permit more than five selectors, convenor and the captain of the team to attend the selection committee meeting. However, by permission, the board used to allow manager Ajit Wadekar to attend the meetings. The tradition was maintained when Sandeep Patil, Madan Lal and Anshuman Gaekwad succeeded to the post. If no 'compromise' formula is achieved - on the Azhar issue specifically - the earlier tradition may be reverted to. All eyes will now be on Kapil Dev as to how he will react to the latest developments.